The CSO has released its second recording under the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Media label, manufactured and distributed by Naxos of America, Inc. The newest recording, Baltic Portraits, features music of contemporary composers hailing from the Baltic region of Europe including Arvo Pärt, Aulis Sallinen, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Lepo Sumera and Erkki-Sven Tüür. The Orchestra recorded these works under the direction of Maestro Paavo Järvi, who concluded his immensely successful decade-long tenure as Music Director at the end of the 2010-11 season. He is now the CSO’s Music Director Laureate.

The recording will be made available on popular digital download sites starting October 4 and in CD format at stores across North America on October 25.

Over the years, the CSO has built a reputation as one the world’s foremost orchestras and a champion of new music and recording projects. The CSO has been home to the American premieres of works by such composers as Debussy, Mahler, Ravel and Bartók, and the world premiere of many works including Aaron Copland’s A Lincoln Portrait. The Orchestra has also commissioned works that have since become mainstays of the classical repertoire, including Copland’s iconic Fanfare for the Common Man. Today, the CSO continues to commission new works and to program an impressive array of music.

Baltic Portraits is the 18th CSO recording with Paavo Järvi. It is taken from live recordings between 2002 and 2011, and reflects Maestro Järvi’s Estonian origins.

The original broadcast producers and engineers of the live recordings were Alexander Kosiorek and Chelsea VandeDrink for Cincinnati Public Radio. The mastering engineer for Baltic Portraits was Michael Bishop and the compilation producer and editor was Thomas C. Moore, both for Five/Four Productions, an independent audio production team based in Cleveland and made up of former key production members of Telarc Records.

The recording was made possible by a generous gift from Mary Ellyn and John Hutton. The CSO is also grateful to Lois Jolson and John Palmer, co-chairs of Paavo Järvi’s farewell season initiatives.